1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a printing system, a printing system control method, and a storage medium.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, an image forming apparatus often includes two or more paper feed stages which can be automatically changed to be used. Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2000-229738 discusses a paper feed control method in which paper attribute information about each type of paper set in a plurality of paper feed stages is stored and if paper cannot be fed from the currently used paper feed stage, the paper feed stage is changed to a paper feed stage whose paper attribute matches the paper attribute of the paper feed stage used thus far, based on the paper attribute information about the paper stored in the other paper feed stages.
With the above-described configuration, the conventional method is capable of automatically changing the paper feed stage when the paper is fully consumed for in the unit of a plurality of groups including a group of pieces of paper attribute information. In addition, in the above-described conventional method, each paper feed stage can be separately set with an automatic paper feed changing function to enable or disable. Accordingly, the above-described conventional method can prevent erroneous feeding of paper set by any other users.
On the other hand, in recent years, the print on demand (POD) market has expanded, in which digital printing is utilized in commercial printing. The types of paper attributes, such as a name, a size, a type, and a grammage of available sheets that can be used on an image forming apparatus for the POD market have been increasing. Accordingly, it is required to set the paper attribute in detail for each paper feed stage. An image forming apparatus discussed by Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2005-060013, in which the paper name can be uniquely set to each type of paper, uses a paper feed control method configured to change the paper feed stage considering the name of the attribute of paper set in a paper feed stage if the paper has the same paper attribute.
With the above-described configuration, sheets of the same paper attribute can be classified according to the name thereof even if manufacturer-designated sheets and user-selected sheets, whose tint and surface nature are different, are used. Accordingly, the conventional method can prevent mixed feeding of sheets of different types. In addition, because the conventional method feeds the sheets of the same name, the user is not required to change a setting for automatically changing the paper feed stage for each paper feed stage every time the user inputs a print job even in an environment in which a large number of users use different types of paper.
However, when a specific unique name is designated in a job, it is necessary for a printer driver or an application configured to generate job data to previously acquire the name of paper registered to an image forming apparatus used in printing the job. For example, it is necessary for a job data generation application generated by a third party to acquire the name of paper used on a target image forming apparatus to be used in printing a job if the name of paper registered to the image forming apparatus is to be acquired as described above.
In addition, in order to achieve the above-described effect, it is necessary for the job data generation application every time paper is newly registered to the image forming apparatus to acquire information about the newly registered paper. Accordingly, the image forming apparatus is required to include an interface for acquiring the registered paper information. In addition, the third party is required to support the interface. Therefore, the cost for development and processing load on the application may increase. In order to prevent this, the name of a paper attribute can be designated based on a common attribute of paper, such as the grammage, the color, the surface nature, or the shape of the sheet, instead of using a name of paper uniquely set on the image forming apparatus.
However, in an environment used in the POD market in which an operator executes printing, the operator may desire not to use any paper other than paper set by the operator even if the other paper has the same attribute as the paper set by the operator. For example, if one operator has set sheets of light yellow to one paper feed stage and the other operator has set sheets of the same color to the other paper feed stage, the density or the brightness of the color of light yellow may slightly differ. In other words, different operators may set the color of each paper differently. Accordingly, an output result desired by the operator may not be acquired.
However, in the above-described POD market, it is considered primarily important that an output product has a high quality, and it is very important that an output result desired by the operator can be acquired. Accordingly, a printing system in which paper other than the paper set by the operator himself/herself, even if the paper has the same attribute, is not used in printing is desired.
In the method discussed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2000-229738, feeding of paper other than the paper that the operator himself/herself desires to use can be prevented by selecting a paper feed stage to be set for an automatic paper changing target every time paper is set. However, in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2000-229738, it becomes always necessary for the operator to reset the setting for the automatic paper change by verifying the current paper feed stage set for the automatic paper change target before each print job is started.
In addition, if the other operator sets the paper having the same attribute as that of a currently printed job when setting paper to be used in subsequent printing in the paper feed stage during printing and if the paper is fully consumed during the currently printed job, then the automatic paper change may be executed. Accordingly, in the method discussed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2000-229738, if printing of another job is currently in process, it is necessary for the operator to update the setting by verifying the paper feed stage set for the automatic paper change target insetting the paper as well as when the timing of starting printing the input job has come.
Due to the reason described above, it is necessary to execute complicated operations to prevent erroneous feeding of paper that has not been set for automatic paper change by securely feeding paper desired by the operator while using the automatic paper change function, which can implement continued printing even if the paper is fully consumed.